By Tammy Engel
Mortgage Advisor
Home Ownership: What you need to know now
Mortgage Matters
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On-line home shopping website Trulia has recently produced a Rent versus Buy Report. Their findings show that in major metropolitan areas throughout the country, homeownership remains cheaper than renting.
While this could be exciting news, home ownership may not be as fun as it sounds. Sure, you can paint the walls any color you like, and plant the garden of your dreams. But what about maintenance and expenses? There is no landlord to call when a pipe breaks or the appliances (or the roof!) need to be replaced.
You can explore these ideas at website Homebuyers.MGIC.com and take their free self-study homebuyer education class. Chapters include information on budgeting and being a responsible, successful home owner. There's even a module for those wanting to buy their first investment property.
Use the Trulia Rent vs Buy calculator today, just click on the image above.
For some reason the media still touts needing 20% down for buying a home. Unless you are buying a rental, that figure is outdated. Many loan programs allow for a significantly lesser down payment, and some of those come without having to pay primary mortgage insurance.
For example, a quick review of our current housing market, using a current range of interest rates on low-down-payment financing,shows that if you can afford $1000-1200 per month in housing expense, you would have a wide choice of reasonable homes.
There's no reason to wonder if you could own your own home. Contact your local mortgage professional today and start with your loan pre-approval. Then when you contact your Realtor you'll be confident in knowing how much you can comfortably shop for and that your loan is standing by.
Tammy Engel is your local Mortgage Advisor, and has been working for your best interest since 1990. Contact her at 661/822-7325 for help with purchase, refinance, and reverse mortgage.
